Tuesday 22 March 2011 18:15, UK
Jack Rodwell is one of five withdrawals from the England Under-21 squad for this week's friendlies against Denmark and Iceland.
Gary Hooper, Mark Davies, Henri Lansbury and Alex Smithies have also pulled out of the games, which will serve as warm-ups for the European Championships this summer. Rodwell suffered an injury in Everton's 2-1 win over Fulham on Saturday, while Hooper - still uncapped at this level - was hurt playing for Celtic in the Scottish Cup final defeat to Rangers. Davies, Lansbury and Smithies have also reported slight knocks and return to Bolton, Norwich and Huddersfield respectively. However, Stuart Pearce still has 26 players to choose from for Thursday's game against Denmark in Viborg and the subsequent match against Iceland in Preston next Monday.
